Captain America: Brave New World Review
The latest Captain America film is forgettable filler.
Captain America: Brave New World. Credit: Marvel / Disney
Marvel’s Captain America: Brave New World is the latest movie in their long-running franchise. The fourth film in the Captain America series and 35th in the overall MCU isn’t the bright spot and return to form I had hoped it would be, but it isn’t bottom of the barrel either. When I saw the early trailers, I had hopes that Captain America: Brave New World would be a paranoia thriller in the mold of the best MCU film, Captain America: Winter Soldier, but while it hits some of the same notes, it feels like a paint-by-numbers product of the Marvel assembly line. It’s entertaining but forgettable.
Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie), formerly the Falcon but now Captain America, tries to work with the new presidential administration of Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford), Bruce Banner's former adversary. When Ross is nearly killed in an assassination attempt, Captain America gets on the case to clear the name of his friend, Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly), who was framed in the attack.
Captain America: Brave New World. Credit: Marvel / Disney
Marvel decided to make this film a stealth sequel to The Incredible Hulk, an early entry into the MCU. I think of it as a deep cut that only ardent fans would remember because Marvel seemed to have largely forgotten about it as well, with the role of Bruce Banner going from Edward Norton to Mark Ruffalo. Including a largely forgettable character from that film in this one—a waste of Tim Blake Nelson’s talents—as well as the baggage its connection saddles on Brave New World, leads to the film losing much of its impact.
Brave New World features some memorable characters I hope to see return, notably the new Falcon, Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez), a good-humored character that contrasts with the now dour Captain America, who suffers under the weight of his legacy. Harrison Ford, Anthony Mackie, and Carl Lumbly were all good in the film; its middling quality is not the performers' fault. Ford clearly had fun, and watching a Hulk that looked like him was entertaining.
Captain America: Brave New World. Credit: Marvel / Disney
The final confrontation between Captain America and the Red Hulk is a memorable action sequence that doesn’t suffer from the weightlessness that these fights often do. While the rest of the action was fine, none of the other sequences will break into any Marvel “best of” lists. They fail to punch up the film’s weak plotting.
Brave New World feels like filler ahead of the more promising Fantastic Four: First Steps and buddy comedy Thunderbolts. Nothing particularly consequential happens. It’s popcorn fluff that’s not particularly fun. It’s not a must-watch; if you’re not a superfan, you might be better off rewatching a better entry in the franchise.
Captain America: Brave New World opened in theaters on February 14, 2025.
